The challenges we face as a country and as a planet require deep technical knowledge and a complex awareness of interconnected systems. And they require creativity -- the ability to see solutions where none have existed before, and to come up with original and useful ideas.

Artists have a valuable role to play in tackling daunting global issues like poverty, inequality, disease, and the future of work. As our society continues to test and pursue more renewable energy options, creative people including artists and designers can bring an inventive and flexible perspective, and recognize unexpected potential. Artists can also communicate new ideas in a way that is compelling and easy to understand.

That idea is explored in "Renewable energy helps us design a better future," an article written by CtG's Colleen Powers for the arts storytelling platform Creative Exchange. The piece discusses artists who have created installations that use clean energy sources such as wind and solar power. It also profiles an organization called Land Art Generator Initiative (LAGI), which seeks and funds ideas for renewable energy generators that double as public art pieces.

One of LAGI's founding directors is quoted in the article as saying, “By building these artworks as landmarks of this time in history, this important energy transition that we’re embarking on, we can leave a mark for future generations to learn from. And contemporary generations can engage directly with the technologies and learn more about them, in a way that art is able to communicate.”